Pack feed control mechanism



Nov. 24, 1953 T. A. RiBlCH PACK FEED CONTROL MECHANISM 4 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Sept. 12, 1950 Lung IN VEN TOR.

THOMAS A. RIB/OH Nov. 24, -1953 T. A. RIBICH PACK FEED CONTROL MECHANISM 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept'. l2, 1950 mm mA. M w l Fig 2 Www/M Nov. 24, 1953 r. A. RlBlcH `PACK FEED CONTROL MECHANISM Filed Sept. 12, 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Nov. 24, 1953 T. A. RlBlcH 2,660,430 PACK FEED coNTRoL'MEcHANIsM Filed sept. 12, 195o 4 sheets-sheet 4 l JNVENTOR.

. moms A. R/B/GH Patented Nov. 24, 1.95.3

PACK FEED CONTROL MECHANISM Thomas A. Ribich, Cleveland, Ohio, assigner, by mesne assignments, to Weldon Tool Company Application September 12, 1950, Serial No. 184,450

2 Claims. (Cl. 271-12) The present invention relates to a device for controlling a conveyor which moves a stack of papers into a machine whereby a supply of papers is always maintained at the machine.

In paper manipulating machines, such as folding machines, the papers to be folded are placed in a continuous stack on a conveyor belt which carries the papers into a machine. The sheets of paper are then removed one at a time from the top of the stack so that each individual sheet may be folded separately. In these machines, a paper separating device is used to remove the sheets of paper one at a time from the top of the stack. This paper separating device generally has air blast tubes which direct an air blast between the sheets of paper in the stack to separate them and a suction wheel to move the top sheet of paper from the top of the stack. To maintain a high rate of production in the machine, a substantially constant supply of paper should be maintained at the paper separating device so that the top sheets may be continually taken from the stack at a uniform rate. It is well known that when a long stack of papers is placed by hand in a longitudinally skewed fashion on conveyors there may be more papers in one portion of the continuous stack than in the next 'succeeding portion of the stack. Since the thickness of the stack at the end of the conveyor or at the suction roll of the separating device should be not greater than a predetermined thickness, it is necessary to provide means for moving the conveyor and the papers carried thereby towards the roll as the papers are removed from the top of the stack. The thickness is directly dependent on the number of sheets of paper at that position and the thickness of each sheet of paper. When too few sheets of paper are present, the thickness of the stack at the end of the conveyor is less than the predetermined thickness and when too many sheets of paper are present, the thickness is greater than the desired predetermined thickness.

Therefore, one of the objects of the invention is to provide a positive control which automatically feeds the stack of papers to the separator device when the preceding papers have been removed from the conveyor by the separator device.

Another object of the invention is to provide an electrically controlled ratchet and pawl drive for a conveyor in a paper folding machine.

Another object of the invention is to provide a thickness gauge on a paper separating device which operates an electrical switch to control a conveyor and thereby move more papers into the device when the supply has reached a predetermined minimum.

Another object of the invention is to provide a conveyor drive for a conveyor wherein the drive is controlled by the thickness of paper or other material leaving the conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to provide a ratchet and pawl drive for a conveyor wherein the pawl is controlled by electrical controls directly responsive to the thickness of paper or other material leaving the conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to provide a ratchet and pawl drive for a conveyor for conveying a longitudinally skewed stack of papers wherein the pawl is controlled by electrical controls directly responsive to the number of papers at the discharge end of the conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simple positive drive for driving a conveyor in stepped movements.

Other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the following description and claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a front side elevational view of the paper separation portion of a folding machine positioned between conveyors;

Figure 2 is a view taken along the line 2;-2 of Figure 1, with certain parts omitted for purposes of clarity;

Figure 3 is a back side elevational view of' the machine taken along the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a top view of the machine as taken along the line 4 4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 3; and

Figure 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view along the line 6--6 of Figure l.

The paper separating device illustrated in the drawings is positioned between rst and second conveyors which are disposed in end to end relationship. Inthis instance, the conveyor I0 conveys a continuous stack of paper I I into the paper separating device I2 and the conveyor I3 carries the individual sheets of paper away from the the vpaper separating device Ii2 towards a paper moved in synchronous movement with the bar 21 and the pulley wheel 26 so that the thickness gauge wheel 36 continually and pivotally bobs up and down against the top of the stack of papers as they are being fed under the suction wheel I5. 'I'he wheel 36 of the thickness gauge 30 is positioned along side of the suction wheel |5 in the separating device l2 to be responsive to the thickness of paper -between the conveyor bed 40 and the suction wheel I5.

I'he micro-switch 3l is secured to the supporting structure of the machine and the shaft 31 of the thickness gauge 30 carries an operating arm 42 having an adjustable set screw 43 which abuts the switch arm of the micro-switch 3|.

The set screw 43 may be threadably adjusted to set the thickness control within a few thousandths of an inch. The control may be adjusted to accommodate thick or thin papers.

When the wheel 36 is bumping the conveyor bed 40, the screw 43 is closing the micro-switch 3|, thereby causing energization of the solenoid 32. Since the solenoid 32 becomes energized, the pawl 22 will drop down to gain a new bite on the ratchet wheel 25 and move the stack of papers l on the conveyor I!! forward. Each time the pulley wheel 26 makes a complete revolution, the wheel 36 is raised up away from the bed 4D and again dropped down onto the stack of papers or to the conveyor bed 40.

When the stack of papers is between the wheel 36 and the conveyor bed 40, the wheel 3B cannot move as close to the conveyor bed 48, thus the set screw 43 cannot angularly move as far to operate the micro-switch 3| and energize solenoid 32. Therefore the conveyor lli will not be stepped forward to move more papers into the paper separating device |2. The energizing of solenoid 32 is dependent on the thickness and thus the number of sheets of paper between control wheel 3B and conveyor bed plate 4t. As long as there are a suicient number of sheets of paper at the separating device l2, the arm 35 can not drop the wheel 36 close enough to the bed plate 4D to close switch 3| and operate solenoid 32. When the top sheets of papers have been removed the thickness of the stack is below the predetermined thickness and the micro-switch will be closed upon dropping of arm 35 and wheel 36 toward the conveyor plate 40.

While the paper manipulating machine is operating so that the separator device |2 is removing sheets of peper one at a time from the top of the stack of papers and depositing these sheets one at a time on the continually moving conveyor I3, the stack of papers is fed into the device by the conveyor I0. The pulley wheel 23 rotates continually to move the bar 21 and the thickness gauge 30 all of the time that the machine is operating and sheets of paper are being removed from stack of papers When the stack of paper gets low, the micro-switch 3| is closed to energize solenoid 32 thereby permitting the bar 21 to drive the ratchet and pawl drive mechanism to step the conveyor l0 and the stack of papers carried thereby into the separating device l2. As soon as the stack of papers reaches the separating device I2, the thickness of the papers will prevent further closing of the switch 3| and thus further stepping of the conveyor until the immediate top sheets of paper of the stack of papers I| has been separated therefrom and each individual sheet moved onto conveyor I3.

Although the invention has been described in Iits preferred form with a certain degree of par- 6 ticularity, it is lunderstood that the present dis-3' closure of the preferred form has been made only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts'may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed. f

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for removing sheets of paper one at a time from the top of a stack of papers, the provision of, a first paper carrying conveyor and a second paper carrying conveyor placed in end to end relationship, paper separating means between said conveyors, ratchet drive wheel means driving said first conveyor in stepped movement, a rocker arm and pawl drive means for said ratchet drive wheel, continuous drive means for said second conveyor, a control arm mounted for movement in a vertical reciprocating path toward and away from the paper carrying surface of said first conveyor, said control arm limited in the travel toward said first conveyor by contact with paper carried thereon, said rocker arm swingable in an oscillatory path between rst and second limits of travel, said pawl means engageable in driving relationship with said ratchet drive wheel means in a rst direction of movement of said rocker arm in said oscillatory path toward said first limit of travel, means urging said rocker arm in a second direction of movement in said oscillatory path toward said second limit of travel, prime mover drive means operating both said rocker arm and control arm in synchronized relationship wherein the control arm is moved toward the conveyor surface and the rocker arm is moved toward said first limit at the same time, and wherein both elements travel in the reverse direction at the same time, catch means engageable with said pawl means in a position to lock said pawl means near said first limit of travel against return by said urging means, said position being a distance from said rst limit to allow said drive means to oscillate said rocker arm a slight amount and lift said rocker arm off said catch as the control arm approaches said conveyor surface, a solenoid attached to said catch to withdraw the catch and release said pawl means, an electrical switch for said solenoid, said control arm having a switch contact arm movable therewith, said contact arm actuating said switch upon approach of said control arm to a predetermined distance above said conveyor surface, and means to adjust said predetermined distance at which actuation of the switch takes place, whereby said catch is relieved of mechanical drag caused'by the pawl means when the switch is activated to operate the solenoid and withdraw the catch.

2. A paper feeding machine to keep a constant supply of stock feed to a handling machine comprising, a conveyor to carry paper stock, ratchet drive wheel means driving said conveyor in stepped movement, a rocker arm and pawl drive means for said ratchet drive wheel, said rocker arm having a rst length of swing for driving said conveyor, catch means to limit said rocker arm to a portion of said rst length of swing, said portion of swing being less than sufficient to effect driving action of the conveyor, said second portion of swing producing a separation of the rocker arm and catch means, catch drive means to move said catch means to an inoperative position and release said rocker arm, a paper depth feeler mounted above said conveyor, drive means moving said paper depth feeler toward and away fmmiaadiqomeyorgimrsgulamxelimatnmmime? mmtrzic sdgpapgxr dsnth f eelertaward .s adeom vermi: takin@ mace; smultanenusm with: said mamma; oi. ther wrak-mr ama: @atom and conm?! means. fara' Said; Catch; dry; means, to. actyatf Sarisik Catch drive amarrar to; mQve tcl; smid inoperatiyerpszsitiun.; salda central .meanafoperafbed by said paper depth feeler-.bymfyementfssaid mler tQ wpredetermim heighmrbevs: sad con- Reieremesf G tedf thema off this paient.- UNITEE STATESPTENTS Dexter'. Nov; 20',` 1928 

